HAF's F-16D crash in Los Llanos Air Base, Albacete, Spain

27/1/2015 Hellenic Air Force (HAF)

On Monday, 26 January 2015, at 15:16 CET, a Hellenic Air Force (HAF) F-16D Block 50 belonging to 111 Combat Wing / 341 Squadron, participating in the 1η training course for 2015 of Tactical Leadership Programme (TLP), in Los Llanos Air Base, Albacete, Spain, crashed during take-off resulting in the deadly injury of its two pilots.

The HAF's pilots involved are, Captain (P) Panagiotis Laskaris, 35 , married, father of a son, with a flight experience of 1.459 flight hours, of which 872 on F-16, and Captain (P) Athanasios Zagkas, 31, married, father of a son and a daughter, with a flight experience of 1.128 flight hours, of which 524 on F-16.

A team of HAF's experts, led by the Chief of Hellenic Tactical Air Force, Lt General Christos Vaitsis has arrived in Los Llanos Air Base.

Due to the presence of toxic-composite material, the accident area has been isolated by the Spanish authorities while a second team of HAF's specialized personnel arrived in Los Llanos Air Base in order to assist in the area's decontamination.

The airplane involved is the S/N 93-1084 F-16D Block 50, in HAF's service since November 1997.

The Chief of HAF General Staff, Lt General Evangelos Tournas, will arrive in Los Llanos Air Base later today.